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Summary
- Lydia is in the Bible: a seller of purple cloth from Thyatira whom Paul met at a place of prayer outside Philippi (Acts 16:13–14).
- “The Lord opened her heart,” and she was baptized with her household and took Paul and his companions into her house (Acts 16:14–15).
- After Paul and Silas were released from prison, they met the believers at her house (Acts 16:40).
- She is the first person in Europe whose conversion Acts records, and she is often called the first Christian convert in Europe.
- Her name is Greek and means “from Lydia,” a region of western Asia Minor; it has no Hebrew meaning.
- Catholics remember her on 3 August and many Orthodox churches on 20 May.
Bibliography (Click to show)
- Behind the Name, “Lydia,” with United States popularity figures from Social Security Administration data and forms in other languages. https://www.behindthename.com/name/lydia
- Strong’s Greek 3070 (Lydia), with Thayer’s Greek Lexicon, and 4211 (porphyropolis), Bible Hub. https://biblehub.com/greek/4211.htm
- “Lydia of Thyatira,” Wikipedia, on her name, her description as a God-fearer and her feast days. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lydia_of_Thyatira
- “Thyatira,” Wikipedia, on the city’s dyeing trade and its guild inscriptions. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thyatira
- “Lydia,” Wikipedia, on the kingdom and its capital, Sardis. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lydia
- Vatican City State, “August 3: Saint Lydia.” https://www.vaticanstate.va/en/state-and-government/general-informations/saint-of-the-day/2482-august-3-saint-lydia.html
- “Лидия Филиппийская,” Drevo Orthodox encyclopedia, on her commemoration on 20 May and the title Equal to the Apostles. https://drevo-info.ru/articles/11082
- John Chrysostom, Homilies on the Acts of the Apostles, homily 35, in Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, series 1, vol. 11. https://www.newadvent.org/fathers/210135.htm
- Flavius Josephus, Antiquities of the Jews, book 1, chapter 6, translated by William Whiston, Project Gutenberg. https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/2848
- Horace, Odes 1.8, 1.13, 1.25 and 3.9. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Odes_(Horace)
- Scripture quotations: Acts 16:9, 12, 14–15, 40; Luke 16:19, English Standard Version; Acts 16:40, New International Version. References: Acts 9:43; 16:13, 22–23; Genesis 10:22; Isaiah 66:19; Revelation 2:18–29; 3:1.
